Fashion One launches world’s first global UHD channel

SES broadcasts Fashion One 4K across North America, South America and Europe, and provides playout and services

NEW YORK and LUXEMBOURG, Sept. 2, 2015 /CNW/ — SES S.A. (NYSE Euronext Paris and Luxembourg Stock Exchange: SESG) and New York-based Fashion One Television LLC., the leading fashion, entertainment and lifestyle television network, announced today the launch of the world’s first global Ultra HD channel, Fashion One 4K. SES is delivering the free-to-air channel across North America, South America and Europe via its satellites.

Fashion One 4K has a technical reach of 100 million households across North America via SES’s Ultra HD platform on the SES-3 satellite at 103 degrees West and 23 million households across South America on the NSS-806 satellite at 47.5 degrees West. In Europe, the channel, broadcast under the brand Fashion 4K, reaches over 116 million households via SES’s prime orbital position at 19.2 degrees East. SES Platform Services, an SES subsidiary, is providing a fully-managed 4k playout along with ground segment and distribution services for the Ultra HD channel.

Fashion Onehas been upgrading its production format from HD to Ultra HD since 2014 and now owns an extensive library of Ultra HD content with 100% content rights. Fashion One 4K currently carries the latest fashion and entertainment content such as new seasons of the active lifestyle series Model Yoga, the global culinary adventures of Fashion On A Plate, and the sustainable fashion docu-series Eco Fashion. Other programming includes specials like The Ultimate Style Guide and Fashion Around the Globe, leaving something for everyone.

With four times the clarity of HD broadcasting, there is no better way to experience the world of fashion than to witness it in Ultra HD’s superior resolution. Viewers will experience the sharpest details, the smoothest lines and the richest colour palette ever to be broadcast on television.

“We are tremendously excited to launch Fashion One 4K, the world’s first global Ultra HD channel dedicated to fashion and entertainment. We have invested heavily in producing Ultra HD content over the last two years, and I’m delighted that we are finally able to share the channel with our viewers,” said Fashion One Television LLC.‘s Chief Operations Officer, Gleb Livshits. “Together with SES, our long-time partner, we are committed to leading the industry and providing our audiences with the highest quality content.”

“Since 2013, SES has been at the forefront of developing the broadcasting part of the Ultra HD ecosystem and was the first to broadcast a live football match and a live concert in the new HEVC compression standard,” said Ferdinand Kayser, Chief Commercial Officer at SES. “Now, Ultra HD is a reality for millions of viewers worldwide, with the first global broadcast channel launching on SES satellites. There is no better way to broadcast Ultra HD than over satellite and we are delighted that Fashion One is also relying on our expertise for the playout, encoding and uplinking of their Ultra HD channel.”

Fashion One 4K was launched concurrently on MEASAT-3a at 91.5 degrees East, reaching over 130 million households across the Asia Pacific, Middle East, Australia and East Africa.

New York-based Fashion One Television LLC. is the leading fashion, lifestyle and entertainment television network with an audience of more than 420 million households. With everything from the latest updates and in-depth interviews with designers and celebrities, audiences are captivated by the network’s programming — including but not limited to reality shows, documentaries, travel diaries, entertainment news and lifestyle series. The network is one of the fastest growing and most well distributed special interest channels in the world and operates under the “Fashion One” brand, with local variants known as “F.O.” and Fashion First. September 1, 2015 marks the birth of “Fashion One 4K”, the world’s first fashion and lifestyle channel launching in more than 6 continents simultaneously in crystal clear 4K quality.

SES (NYSE Euronext Paris and Luxembourg Stock Exchange: SESG) is the world-leading satellite operator with a fleet of more than 50 geostationary satellites. The company provides satellite communications services to broadcasters, content and internet service providers, mobile and fixed network operators and business and governmental organisations worldwide.

SES stands for long-lasting business relationships, high-quality service and excellence in the satellite industry. The culturally diverse regional teams of SES are located around the globe and work closely with customers to meet their specific satellite bandwidth and service requirements.

SES holds a participation in O3b Networks, a next generation satellite network combining the reach of satellite with the speed of fiber.